Early cases for the iPad 2 have shown a space for a new port that could possibly be a Light Peak connector, according to MacRumors.

Previous reports suggested that the port could be for a Mini DisplayPort, or Mini USB.

MacRumors suggests the port could actually be for Light Peak.

Light Peak prototypes have been using hybrid USB 3 connector connectors that might easily be confused for USB. The exact connector for Light Peak hasn't been described, but it may be close enough to USB to be a case of mistaken identity in the early iPad 2 rumors. The opening for the port may be a bit small for a full-sized USB connector, though it seems feasible that the Light Peak could also adopt a mini USB style form factor as well.

Interestingly, CNET reports that Apple is expected to make an announcement about a new high speed connection technology

Early cases for the iPad 2 have shown a space for a new port that could possibly be a Light Peak connector, according to MacRumors.

Previous reports suggested that the port could be for a Mini DisplayPort, or Mini USB.

MacRumors suggests the port could actually be for Light Peak.

Light Peak prototypes have been using hybrid USB 3 connector connectors that might easily be confused for USB. The exact connector for Light Peak hasn't been described, but it may be close enough to USB to be a case of mistaken identity in the early iPad 2 rumors. The opening for the port may be a bit small for a full-sized USB connector, though it seems feasible that the Light Peak could also adopt a mini USB style form factor as well.

Interestingly, CNET reports that Apple is expected to make an announcement about a new high speed connection technology

*thanks iclarified*

This seems unlikely, who would this benefit? There are no Light Peak compatible computers and there won't be enough for this to make any sense for at least another year or two...

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Geohot has set up a new blog and is asking for help in his legal battle with Sony.

Media, I need your help. This is the first time I have ever asked. Please, if you support this cause, help me out and spread the word.

I want, by the time this goes to trial, to have Sony facing some of the hardest hitting lawyers in the business.

Together, we can help fix the system

Sony is suing Geohot and fail0verflow for jailbreaking the PS3 console. This is a case that could have huge ramifications for consumer rights. The EFF says, "Sony's core arguments — that it can silence speech that reveals security flaws using the DMCA and that the mere fact of a terms of use somewhere gives a company permanent and total control over what you do with a device under pain of criminal punishment — are both sweeping and frightening, and not just for gamers and computer researchers. Frankly, it's not what we expect from any company that cares about its customers, and we bet it's not what those customers expect, either."

The Library of Congress Copyright Office has ruled that smartphone jailbreaking was legal but they have not as of yet made the same ruling for game consoles. Geohot has helped many in the iPhone community with his jailbreaks. We urge you to donate towards the cause. You can read more details about this on http://www.geohot.com or at his new "Geohot Got Sued" blog.

Best Buy's Laptop Discovery Tool is listing a set of "New SKU" laptops from Apple Computer, according to Engadget.

This seems to corroborate recent rumors of a MacBook Pro refresh coming next week, as do the $1,199, $1,499, $1,799, and $2,199 price points, all of which are presently occupied by current-gen 13- and 15-inch MBP variants. There is an additional $2,499 sticker for a laptop identified only as "New SKU I," which presumably points to an upgrade to Apple's 17-incher.

Screenshots were previously leaked of Best Buy's internal system that listed new MacBook Pros with a March 11th release date and price of $1199 for the 13-inch model.

Since then MacTrust has predicted that the notebooks will feature a better battery, be lighter, have an improved display, and offer a modular drive. MacRumors has confirmed with a source that the MacBook Pros will be released on Thursday, February 24th.

*thanks iclarified*

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Google Docs View has been updated with support for 12 new file formats including Apple Pages, Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop.

The Google Docs Viewer is used by millions of people every day to quickly view PDFs, Microsoft Word documents and PowerPoint presentations online. Not only is viewing files in your browser far more secure than downloading and opening them locally, but it also saves time and doesn’t clutter up your hard-drive with unwanted files.

Apple is expected to make an announcement about a new high speed connection technology, according to CNET.

Whether the new connector tech will be part of the upcoming MacBook Pro update (rumored to happen February 24) or announced in another context is not clear. Intel has been working on a technology called Light Peak for years and recently said the initial version would be based on copper, as practical realities dictate more conventional technology.

Apple is expected to adopt this Intel technology in the near future--but likely use a name other than Light Peak, a source familiar with this aspect of Apple's plans said. Intel has said in the past that the first products using Light Peak should appear in the first half of 2011.

Recently, an Apple patent application was unearthed that described the addition of a fiber optic line inside a MagSafe power connector to allow data transfer for multiple types of inputs.

*thanks iclarified*

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Apple may be planning to release a larger iPod touch or smaller iPad, according to Concord Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

AppleInsider reports, Kuo described a new iOS device that is undergoing evaluation for a potential release during the second half of 2011, with a screen size between that of the current iPad and the iPhone. Speaking of this new product, Kuo said he was "not sure" whether it would be "a 'Super iPhone' or a 'iPad mini.'"

Yesterday, SuperApple reported that two separate and well informed sources say Apple is working on device with screen size just under six inches. While SuperApple believed this device to be a smaller iPad, AppleInsider believes it will be a larger iPod touch.

With a 5 inch screen, a "big iPod touch" at its existing resolution would offer a 230ppi screen density; stretched across a 7 inch screen the same resolution would deliver 164ppi, still higher than the existing iPad's pixel density of 132ppi. Rather than trying to crush the full sized iPad's resolution into a smaller screen, something Apple's chief executive Steve Jobs quipped last fall would require filing down users' fingers, such a device could simply serve as an expansion of the iPod family, offering a larger view of the simpler iPod touch user interface.

Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo also predicted iPad 3 model would incorporate a 9.7 inch IPS panel with FFS (fringe-field switching) technology, which enables a wider viewing angle and clearer visual quality under in sunlight, and a doubling of the resolution to 2048x1536.

*thanks iclarified*

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Semaphore has released an update to TinyUmbrella which brings the file size way down and teased his upcoming utility TinyPwn.

I just pushed a smaller, trimmed-down version of TinyUmbrella. This change had to take precedence over the other things I was working on for TinyUmbrella because the bandwidth usage was insane. Now that this is out of the way, I can go back to the 4.2.1 recovery kick out issue. Have a great weekend folks!

On Twitter, semaphore also says he's written 18k out of 55k lines of code for a new utility called TinyPwn.

A new report pegs the release date for the new MacBook Pros as Thursday, February 24th.

Earlier this weekend MacTrust predicted that new devices would be feature a better battery, be lighter, have an improved display, offer a modular drive, and use Intel's new Sandy Bridge processor.

Today, iSpazio posted model numbers for the rumored notebooks.

Now MacRumor is saying, We've since heard reliable confirmation that this information is accurate and that the expected release date is this upcoming Thursday, February 24th. The move would be a bit unusual for Apple to launch new machines on a Thursday. So, if you are about to buy a new MacBook Pro, wait until next week.

*thanks iclarified*

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Gizmodo has hired a plane and took some photos of Steve Jobs' now demolished mansion.

The Jackling House was located in Woodside, California, designed and built for copper mining magnate Daniel Cowan Jackling and his family by the noted California architect George Washington Smith in 1925. George Washington Smith integrated the 17,000 sq ft residence and landscaped gardens with a large traditional courtyard, open-air balconies, and many indoor-outdoor sightline and access connections. Details about the house and its contents when Jackling lived there, including the organ, are in his collected papers in the Stanford University Library. [W]

After a long legal battle, the mansion was destroyed earlier this week. Local preservationists had created a group, 'Uphold Our Heritage', dedicated to saving the historic residence but they were unsuccessful.

Take a look below...

*thanks iclarified*

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